Iconic Los Angeles Punk Band X Playing Final Shows After Almost 50 Years

Lauren Novak July 31, 2024

(L-R) Bass player John Doe (born John Duchac), singer Exene Cervenka (born Christine Cervenka), guitarist Billy Zoom (born Tyson Kindell) and drummer DJ Bonebrake (born Donald J. Bonebrake), of the American punk rock band X, pose for a group portrait on January 14, 1981 at The Old Waldorf in San Francisco, California — Randy Bachman/Getty Images

Since the late ’70s, punk rock enthusiasts knew you were cool if you had heard of X. The band X features members Exene Cervenka, John Doe, Billy Zoom and D. J. Bonebrake. After releasing nine studio albums, including the recent Smoke & Fiction, X has announced that they are in the midst of their farewell tour.

For a band that was named one of the most influential of the ’90s and whose first two studio albums were ranked among the 500 greatest of all time, they remain humble. While each member has their own reasons for saying goodbye to the band, the mutual decision came from a place of wanting to release the final album and final shows at the right time.

John Doe, Exene Cervenka and Billy Zoom of the band X perform at The Pacific Amphitheatre on July 28, 2024 in Costa Mesa, California

Harmony Gerber/Getty Images

“We’re just a band,” Cervenka told the Los Angeles Times. “People have so much attached to bands. It’s just people playing music. It’s not a big deal.” Likely if you ask any of their fans, they would disagree and say that X is a very big deal. Another big deal was their final album, a companion to their 2020 album Alphabetland, which was recorded in just three days after years of preparation. Doe said of the album, “If I could sum up our career in a song, I would say there it is. ‘Big Black X.'” “It’s a funny song,” Cervenka added. “It was just a lot of freedom [in the band’s early days] and wildness that kids might not have as much of now.”

Their tour, chockful of songs like “Water & Wine” and “Come Back to Me” will extend into 2025. Although the band confirmed this is their final album and tour, they are not against releasing single tracks and playing one-off shows in bigger theaters. Doe joked, “If you want to see X in a sweaty club, do it now.”

Even after almost 50 years of performing, Zoom admitted that he still gets some stage fright. He said, “Every show is hard work. And a big anxiety trip to get over with. It’s hard to get up in front of people and perform. I enjoy it and it’s a good job, but when people ask me what’s my favorite song to play live, I always say the last one.”

Members of the punk rock band "X" (L-R): DJ Bonebreak, Billy Zoom, John Doe and Exene Cervenka attend a handprint ceremony inducting the band into the Hollywood Rockwalk on June 25, 2002 in Hollywood, California

Vince Bucci/Getty Images

“You never know when the end will be,” Cevernka concluded. “Here’s the thing: Making two records in the last six years is pretty amazing. We did that. And I’m happy about that. But what is a tour? We’ve been playing for the past 45 years and we’ll play until people stop wanting to see us. Or, until one of us says, ‘You know what, this is too hard. I don’t want to do it anymore.’ And I don’t know if that’s next week or next year. It’s a good wakeup call for people because we’re not doing this forever.”

Fortunately, we could catch X this one last time as they rode through town, check out some of the highlights below.